NEW YORK, April 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The gradually falling unemployment rate is not yet providing American workers with a sense of security about their current employment status. In fact, the majority (56%) of employees are worried about job and benefits security as they watch the inner working of their employers' daily decisions about these critical issues. These are among the findings of the new Harris Poll Job Security Index which forms a baseline score that will be measured monthly to track the changing sentiment of today's American workers. Full findings and data tables are available here.

The new Harris Poll Job Security Index offers an internal view into today's American workplace by reporting on the job/benefits security pulse of the worker. The online survey of 1,014 American workers conducted between March 19 and 21, 2013 by The Harris Poll, found that:

More than three in four (77%) workers believe their benefits will be reduced, especially health benefits.

More than three in five (64%) believe their salaries will not increase.

Half (50%) believe they will be asked to do more work for the same pay.

This month's data also shows 14% of employees worry that they will lose their job in the next three months, and one in five (20%) say it is likely they will have their salary or hours reduced. In addition, 32% of American workers say that if they were going to look for a new job in the next three months, they would not be likely to find one.

So What?According to Al Angrisani, President and Chief Executive Officer of Harris Interactive and former Assistant Secretary of Labor for President Reagan, the reason the Harris Poll Job Security Index is an important new metric is that it offers insight into the culture and current state of job creation in the American workplace that might not otherwise be measured.

"Employers have all the leverage in today's job marketplace and will continue to push productivity gains and the elimination of jobs or replacement by lower paying jobs until the supply and demand for labor changes," commented Angrisani. "The Harris Poll Job Security Index is a way to measure where the leverage in the job market is today. Until there is more employee leverage in the system, it is unlikely that you will see meaningful job creation," Angrisani concluded.

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MethodologyThis Harris Poll was conducted online within the United Statesbetween March 19 and 21 among 2,076 adults (aged 18 and over) of whom 1,014 are employed fulltime or part-time. Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.

All sample surveys and polls, whether or not they use probability sampling, are subject to multiple sources of error which are most often not possible to quantify or estimate, including sampling error, coverage error, error associated with nonresponse, error associated with question wording and response options, and post-survey weighting and adjustments. Therefore, Harris Interactive avoids the words "margin of error" as they are misleading. All that can be calculated are different possible sampling errors with different probabilities for pure, unweighted, random samples with 100% response rates. These are only theoretical because no published polls come close to this ideal.

Respondents for this survey were selected from among those who have agreed to participate in Harris Interactive surveys. The data have been weighted to reflect the composition of the adult population. Because the sample is based on those who agreed to participate in the Harris Interactive panel, no estimates of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.

These statements conform to the principles of disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

The results of this Harris Poll may not be used in advertising, marketing or promotion without the prior written permission of Harris Interactive.

The Harris Poll®#19, April 4, 2013

About Harris InteractiveHarris Interactive, Inc. (NASDAQ: HPOL) is one of the world's leading market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll® and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers proprietary solutions in the areas of market and customer insight, corporate brand and reputation strategy, and marketing, advertising, public relations and communications research. Harris possesses expertise in a wide range of industries including health care, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Additionally, Harris has a portfolio of multi-client offerings that complement our custom solutions while maximizing our client's research investment. Serving clients in more than 196 countries and territories through our North American and European offices, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us - and our clients—stay ahead of what's next. For more information, please visit www.harrisinteractive.com.